A landmark service will take place this summer to drive forward efforts in the rebuilding of an igloo-shaped Anglican church in the Arctic, which was damaged by arson in November 2005 and demolished in June 2006.
Funds are currently being raised to rebuild St Jude's Cathedral in Iqaluit, and the service on 3 June will be the start of a renewed effort to ensure the famous cathedral is restored.Bishop of the Arctic, the Rt Rev Andrew Atagotaaluk, said the diocese's fundraising effort had so far raised $1.5 million of the $6 million needed to rebuild the cathedral.
He said that he and the fundraising team in Iqaluit will now redouble their efforts to meet the target.
"The financial part is slow. But we have been making progress since last year. We are now getting more financial responses from various people, churches, organisations, and within the diocese as well," he said.
He added that with mail being slow in the region, responses to appeals made last June only came in December and early this year.
The campaign has also received a boost from parishioners of the diocese of Ottawa, who organised a fundraiser last year.
Meanwhile, Bishop Atagotaaluk acknowledged that he has received "about one or two" letters from Anglicans who declared that they would not contribute to the rebuilding of St Jude's because of its controversial declaration in 2005 banning the employment of, among others, homosexuals, lesbians and bisexuals.
Bishop Atagotaaluk, however, indicated that St Jude's would be staying true to its biblical stance and said that he was not worried by the letters.Nonetheless, he expressed the hope that people would go beyond the issue and think of what the cathedral represents for Christianity in the north.
"This has nothing to do with individuals or the Church's stand on the issue. This is something vitally important to a ministry of any kind and that should be supported," he said.
"This has something to do with our faith, the faith that we have in God, his work."
He also reminded Anglicans: "We have a commonality across the country, even if we don't agree on certain issues within the Church.
"We should not have attitudes that are politically grounded. We are a church that believes that Jesus Christ is the head of the church and it is his work that we are drawn together to share."
Bishop Atagotaaluk also noted the "unique" characteristics of the diocese, which makes the rebuilding of the cathedral a challenging endeavour. "We are in a very isolated place compared to the southern churches, which have a connection with roads and getting supplies from one place to another is a lot cheaper. We have vast areas covered only by air," he said.
In the absence of a cathedral, services are being held at a nearby parish hall, which used to be a gathering place for outreach and other ministries.
"The parish is now limited in terms of activities because it's now being used for worship," he said.
The Diocese of the Arctic is the largest of 30 dioceses in the Anglican Church of Canada, covering an area of about four million square kilometres, or about one third of the area of the country. It includes not just the Arctic region of Canada, but also the Northwest Territories, Nunavut, and the Nunavik region of northern Quebec.
